I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank the veterans of the United States military on this day.  Our country as diverse as it is shares the freedoms that many countries do not have.  The freedoms that we take for granted are often non existent some other countries.  We owe a debt of gratitude to our veterans who fought for our country.  Many of these veterans never saw any hostility but that does not remove the gratitude for them because we know at any time those that were in the military could have been called upon at any time.    What ever the motivation, the end result was the same and that is a retention of our rights that we enjoy today.

Our country has people of differing opinions to the point of hostility.  There are many in our own country that cannot muster the energy to say a nice word about our military.  As contemtable as that is to me, I say this…You owe gratutude to our military for giving you the right to dissent.  Our military is an all volunteer force and no one is compelled to join but somehow our military always ranks among the top in the world.  Some of these people join for the opportunity to serve our country, while some join to gain a college education.  Some go as a last resort during hard economic times.  Whatever the reason a person joins we know that it was voluntary and no one forced them to join.  The rights and freedoms that we Americans enjoy are directly related to the veterans that live next door to you.  Again, I would like to express my thanks to those that joined the military for what ever reason.  You have ensured our safety, our freedoms, and our rights and I am grateful.

Thank you,

Paul